TLDR
- Uniswap won a patent infringement lawsuit filed by organizations linked to Bancor.
- The lawsuit challenged Uniswap’s use of the CPAMM trading model, which Bancor claimed was patented.
- The court ruled that the patent allegations did not meet the legal requirements for infringement.
- The ruling emphasizes the difficulty of patenting basic financial formulas used in decentralized finance.
- Uniswap’s open-source code played a key role in the court’s decision.
Uniswap has secured a major legal victory after a patent infringement lawsuit filed by organizations connected to Bancor was dismissed. The case centered around allegations that Uniswap used a patented trading method for automated token exchanges without permission. On February 11, Uniswap founder Hayden Adams confirmed the outcome via social media, revealing that the court ruled in favor of the decentralized exchange.
A lawyer just told me we won https://t.co/IakITk0F3Q
— Hayden Adams 🦄 (@haydenzadams) February 11, 2026
Court Rejects Bancor’s Patent Infringement Claims
The legal dispute began in May 2025 when Bprotocol Foundation and LocalCoin Ltd., linked to Bancor, filed a lawsuit in New York federal court. They claimed that Uniswap Labs and the Uniswap Foundation had been using a patented trading method, specifically the constant product automated market maker model (CPAMM), since 2018. This model, known for the formula x*y=k, is fundamental to pricing tokens within liquidity pools, a key feature in decentralized exchanges.
Bancor’s legal team argued that Uniswap’s reliance on the CPAMM formula was unauthorized and violated a patent granted in 2017. The plaintiffs sought damages for years of alleged patent infringement. However, Uniswap rejected these claims, asserting that its code has always been open-source and publicly available, making it difficult for the patent to apply.
Legal Victory Strengthens Open-Source DeFi Development
The court’s decision marked a clear win for open-source development in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space. Legal experts pointed out that the ruling emphasized the difficulty of patenting simple financial formulas that are openly shared and widely adopted. As Uniswap’s software was open-source from the start, the court found that the plaintiffs failed to meet the legal requirements for patent infringement.
Support from industry groups like the DeFi Education Fund and the Solana Institute played a role in backing Uniswap’s stance. These organizations warned against using patents to restrict open innovation and the development of decentralized finance platforms. The ruling strengthens the argument that the basic mechanisms behind DeFi cannot be restricted by patent claims.
Outcome Offers Relief to Uniswap Users and Ecosystem
With the legal battle settled at the district court level, Uniswap and its partners can now operate without the looming threat of patent-related restrictions. The uncertainty surrounding the lawsuit had created concerns about potential setbacks for Uniswap’s platform and its ecosystem. Many feared that a different court ruling could slow down the rollout of new features and partnerships within the decentralized finance space.
As of now, there has been no indication that the plaintiffs will appeal the decision. Uniswap’s legal victory confirms that the court is unlikely to restrict the use of basic trading formulas in the decentralized exchange market, paving the way for further innovation in the DeFi sector.
